Saudi Arabia
Saudi security forces are on alert for a possible al Qaeda attack during the Hajj, the annual pilgrimage to the Saudi cities of Mecca and Medina. Interior Minister Prince Nayef did not mention a specific plot, however.
Author Archives: Bill Roggio
US Predators kill 6 Haqqani Network fighters in North Waziristan
The Haqqani Network fighters were killed in a missile barrage while returning from Khost province in Afghanistan.
Afghanistan
The Taliban killed seven policemen in Uruzgan, two security guards and a policeman in Khost, and two ISAF soldiers in the south and east. Coalition and Afghan forces killed and captured several Taliban and Haqqani Network commanders and fighters during operations in Ghazni, Farah, Nangarhar, Logar, and Kabul. Three Taliban fighters died in a premature […]
Iraq
Insurgents killed three Christians in targeted attacks in Baghdad and three Awakening fighters in an IED blast in Babil. Joint security forces detained 23 wanted men in operations southwest of Kirkuk.
Pakistan
Security forces killed 15 Taliban fighters in airstrikes in Arakzai and two “terrorists” in operations in Swat. The Taliban bombed three schools in Mohmand and torched a NATO fuel tanker in Sibbi.
Thailand
Muslim insurgents killed three people in attacks as the prime minister visited the south. Insurgents killed a teenager and a Buddhist man in shootings in Pattani province, and a Muslim woman in a shooting in Narathiwat province.
Yemen
Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula fighters assassinated a colonel at an LNG facility in Shabwa province. Four people were killed in tribal clashes in Abyan province. Thousands of people protested in Dhale over the arrest of a Southern Movement leader.
Afghanistan
The Taliban killed a district governor in Paktia and killed an ISAF soldier in the south. Coalition and Afghan forces killed and captured several Taliban and Haqqani Network commanders and fighters during operations in Kandahar, Helmand, Uruzgan, Zabul, and Kabul. The government ordered 150 aid groups to shut down operations.
Iraq
Ten Iraqis were killed in a car bomb attack late Monday night in Basrah. Insurgents killed two policemen in Mosul. Security forces detained 12 wanted men in Maysan.
Somalia
A Puntland minister said 70 soldiers from neighboring Somaliland fought with Shabaab in the Galgala region. Somaliland’s information minister denied the charge and called Shabaab commander Atom a “terrorist.” Two civilians were killed in a hand grenade blast in Mogadishu.
France
Police arrested five terrorism suspects in Paris and the suburbs who are thought to have trained at al Qaeda camps in Pakistan’s northwest. Several of the suspects are also thought to have sent death threats to the rector of the Grand Mosque of Paris.
Haqqani Network facilitator arrested on plane bound for Saudi Arabia
Afghan officials forced an airplane to return to Kabul International Airport to arrest a Haqqani Network facilitator and three associates.
Italy
Police arrested 16 members of a suspected terrorism logistical support cell in the city of Naples. Most of the suspects were Algerians, Tunisians, and Moroccans; two Italians were also detained.
Pakistan
Six Taliban fighters were killed by gunmen in Kurram. The Taliban threatened to killed the vice chancellor of Islamia College University if their demands were not met. Pakistani intelligence indicates the Taliban is preparing to attack religious sites during Eid-ul-Azha.
Afghanistan
Coalition and Afghan forces killed and captured several Taliban and Haqqani Network commanders and fighters during operations in Helmand, Farah, and Paktika. The Taliban killed a civilian in Helmand and an ISAF soldier in the east. Seven Taliban fighters laid down their weapons in Kunduz.
Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula
Anwar al Awlaki, the US-born al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula cleric, called for the murder of US citizens. “Do not consult anyone in killing Americans,” Awlaki said in a videotape released on jihadist forums. “Killing the devil does not need any fatwa.”
Yemen
Al Qaeda fighters attacked a military vehicle as the Yemeni defense minister visited Abyan province. Foreign Minister Kurbi denied the US is carrying out Predator or other air and military strikes in Yemen. The US is pressing Yemen for better access to intelligence and al Qaeda suspects.
Iraq
Insurgents killed 11 people in car bomb attacks in Najaf and Karbala, and killed a civilian in an IED attack in Mosul. Police detained two wanted terrorists in Maysan. Iraqi political leaders are meeting in Irbil in an effort to select a new government.
Somalia
Somali pirates kidnapped two foreigners near the Seychelles. Ahlu Sunna Wal Jama™a, the pro-government Sufi militia, accused Shabaab of carrying out atrocities against women and children in Beledweyn. The government said Hizbul Islam has been ejecting civilians from Mogadishu and Afgoi.
Pakistani Taliban enlist 6 local groups in Wana region of South Waziristan
The Movement of the Taliban in Pakistan has announced that several Taliban groups based in areas under the command of Mullah Nazir have joined its ranks. Also, the Taliban spokesman denied that top commanders Hakeemullah and Qari Hussain Mehsud were killed in recent Predator strikes.
ISAF and Afghan forces capture al Qaeda-linked Taliban commander in west
The commander helped “foreign fighters” enter Afghanistan and served as an IED expert.
Pakistan
The US killed 14 terrorists, including five foreign fighters, in Predator strikes in North Waziristan. The Taliban executed three “US spies” in North Waziristan. Ten Taliban fighters were killed in airstrikes in Arakzai.
Iraq
Insurgents killed two soldiers, two Awakening fighters, a policeman, and an imam in Mosul, Tal Afar, Samarra, and Baghdad. Security forces killed a suicide bomber near a school in Tal Afar.
Somalia
Seven people were killed in fighting in Mogadishu. The Somali government called for 20,000 more foreign troops to aid in the fight against Shabaab and Hizbul Islam. Pirates reportedly received a $9.5 million ransom for the release of a South Korean oil tanker and a crew of 24.
Sudan
The US will drop Sudan from the list of countries designated as state supporters of terrorism if elections are held in January 2011 and the results are fair. “We like to consider this a pay-for-performance operation,” an Obama administration official said.
Yemen
Germany, Britain, France, and the US have suspended passenger and parcel flights originating in Yemen. Prime Minister Ali Mujawar said al Qaeda is a Western problem and not a Yemeni issue.
US kills 14 ‘militants’ in pair of strikes in North Waziristan
Predators and Reapers hit terrorist havens in Miramshah and Datta Khel. Five “foreigners” were reported killed.
Afghanistan
Marine recommended for Medal of Honor for Afghanistan bravery
Saudis suspend mediation as Taliban refuse to cut ties with al Qaeda
I haven’t written about the so-called negotiations between the Afghan government and the Taliban because there is so much contradictory information in the press on what exactly has occurred so far that, as with past negotiations, it is very likely little has happened other than the making of some cursory contacts. The conflicting press reports […]
Afghanistan
Security forces killed and captured Taliban and Haqqani Network leaders and fighters in Ghazni and Logar. The Taliban killed three ISAF soldiers in the south and the east, and torched two NATO supply trucks in Wardak. ISAF is investigating reports that an Afghan soldier killed two US Marines in Helmand.